The Los Angeles Rams find themselves in a precarious situation prior to the 2020 NFL season as they have experienced massive overhaul in respect to the roster and sidelines.
The Rams lost key players like Eric Weddle, Cory Littleton, Dante Fowler Jr. and Clay Matthews on the defensive side, while the offense will look drastically different after the front office decided to cut Todd Gurley and trade Brandin Cooks. This kind of turnover coupled with a lack of depth raises serious concerns about the team’s ability to make it back to the postseason after missing it for the first time during Sean McVay’s tenure as head coach.
Aside from the offense and defense, special teams also suffered a hit after special teams coach John Fassel and kicker Greg Zuerlein opted to go to the Dallas Cowboys. Los Angeles hired John Bonamego from the Detroit Lions to replace Fassel, while the kicker position seems to be up for grabs after a couple of signings.
Despite the lack of continuity, punter Johnny Hekker seemed optimistic about the new-look Rams, via Sarina Morales of TheRams.com:
“I see huge potential for growth with our special teams unit this coming season. With new leadership, a new kicker, and a new stable of young talent that will be joining us in the coming weeks, we will all have the opportunity to grow together. With any change, there is going to be a premium on improvement and focusing on your craft. I believe the best is yet to come.”
Hekker remains one of the few mainstays on the Rams and he will be leaned on to help get the new special teams units up and running as quickly as possible. Bonamego had a successful tenure with the Lions coordinating their special teams units and hopefully that production finds its way to Los Angeles where that portion of the field saw a dip.
Despite Hekker’s comments, there are still numerous questions as to how this team will look after all the coaching and roster changes. A disappointing 2019 season likely prompted the moves, but there are plenty of moving parts that will likely require an adjustment period whenever the regular season does start.
However, the front office’s priority will be the upcoming 2020 NFL Draft as they have several positions they need to fill after seeing so many departures at key spots. The NFC West will arguably be the best division in football once again and the Rams are going to need to add impact players if they want to keep pace.
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